


Shades

by wyse_ink



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, Post-Canon, Romance, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-22
Updated: 2018-08-22
Packaged: 2019-07-01 00:43:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15763098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyse_ink/pseuds/wyse_ink
Summary: Moments, early morning.A short, simple drabble written at 3:00 a.m.





	Shades

      There’s a subtle glow emitted from the world outside. It seeps in through the window and encases the room’s interior with dark, soft grays and blues. The sun hasn’t yet begun to rise, and the cicadas still chirp freely. It’s early– _too_ early, Erza thinks, but she’s not in the frame of mind to complain. In fact, she’s barely aware of anything other than the hand that lightly tugs at the ends of her hair. Jellal’s eyes are soft as he stares up at her, twisting a strand of red around his finger.  
      “What are you thinking about?” she asks.  
      For a moment, she wonders if he’ll even answer. She watches as a smile flickers at the corners of his lips so subtly she nearly misses it.  
      “How glad I am that we can talk like this,” he says in his quiet, even tone.  
      Erza feels a smirk creeping across her own face. “I think we’ve passed that point, don’t you?” Even in what little lighting there is, Erza is sure she sees him blush. She shifts slightly, a shiver fluttering through her as he releases her hair and rests his hand on her thigh. Slowly, she leans forward and presses her mouth against his. He murmurs her name against her lips, and not for the first time she’s overwhelmed by the tenderness of his tone.  
      In some ways, Jellal is still alien to her: they’ve always been very different people, and too many years they’d spent apart, constantly picking up the pieces in-between reunions. What reunions they did have were brief, and yet little by little, each had filled in a part of those gaps Erza had thought she always knew; parts that had always been there and despite the odds still strengthened over time.  
      She’s sensed that for a long time now, Jellal has felt the same.  
      Lazily, she rolls to his side, her head sinking into the pillow as his gaze follows her. Reaching out, she traces his tattoo with her thumb, taking in the strange but familiar shape and the way it lines his cheek. His messy hair covers part of it, and she pushes it back, letting her own fingers tangle in the thick, dark blue. He hums contentedly and lets out a sigh as his eyelids threaten to close in response. A thought flickers in the back of her mind, and for a moment longer she lets it linger on her tongue.  
      “When do you have to go back?” she finally dares to ask.  
      His brow furrows slightly, and he opens his eyes again. “When.” Pausing, he seems to ponder her question for a moment. “I’d rather the question be if.”  
      Erza suppresses a chuckle at that. “ _If_ you go back,” she begins again, “when will that be?”  
      “When they need me to,” he answers simply, and Erza pictures his guild members in her mind. “What about you?”  
      She smiles. “I think even Fairy Tail can survive a bit longer without me,” she replies. A softness crosses over his face again at that, and she lets him pull her closer.  
      Color floods the room as the sun begins to rise outside. With it, Erza feels a strange and familiar warmth–one that’s only amplified by the feeling of Jellal next to her and the sight of his still-flushed skin. A word echoes in the back of her mind–one even she’s never dared to consider and one she knows Jellal has never allowed himself to. She hopes–she suspects–he is now. The room is quiet as light brings it to life around them, and she inches closer, falling into the rhythm of his slow and steady breaths.  
      She knows they’ll go their separate ways again soon. When they do, she knows she’ll find her friends there waiting, chomping at the bit to go on their next adventure. And she’ll be ready for whatever that adventure might be, clad in armor and with her luggage in hand.  
      For now, though, she only wants to enjoy this.

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: https://wyseink.tumblr.com/post/177265916520/shades
> 
> Thank you for reading! This is a little more abstract than what I normally do, but hopefully it was still fun. 
> 
> Keep those eyes peeled for my multi-chapter Fairy Tail fic (i.e., the Forever-Work-in-Progress). Hopefully, I'll have news of it on my blog (http://www.wyseink.tumblr.com) soon.


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